Apparatus for hydraulic mining



April 1962 F. DONALDSON ET AL 3,030,086

' APPARATUS FOR HYDRAULIC MINING 2 SheetsSheet 1 //vv/vr0/?s FRANCISDUIVALDSO/V, LOU/5' L. SNEDDE/V RUSSELL 6. GONE BY Filed April 10, 1959FIG.

April 17, 1962 Filed April 10, 1959 F. DONALDSON ET AL 3,030,086

APPARATUS FOR HYDRAULIC MINING 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTORS' FRANCISDONALDSON LOU/S L. SNEDD .RUSSELL 6- Calf E 3,030,086 I APPARATUS FORHYDRAULIC MINING Francis Donaldson, Bronxville, N.Y., and Louis IL.Suedden, Los Angeles, and Russell G. Cone, Vallejo, Califi, assignorstoMason & Hanger-Silas Mason Co., Inc.

Filed Apr. 10, 1959, Ser. No. 805,467

1 Claim. (Cl. 262-1) The present invention relates to undergroundrecovery of comminuted ore brought into that state by use of theinvention. The characteristic of the inventionis the employment of aprimary and exterior casing and a second ary tubular holder telescopedwithin the primary casing, a high water pressure jet pipe beingprojected through diaphragm guides in the said two members, togetherwith an air lift with its air pipe being independently raised andlowered relative to the primary casing and the holder, and the air liftbeing associated with a high pressure water nozzle which can bemanipulated in an arcuate path to produce a large cavity in the area ofthe ore deposit. In view of the fact that the casing supplement holdermay be rotated bodily, the apparatus is able to dig its own shaft, andthe high pressure jet loosens and breaks up the ore deposit sothat theair lift is enabled to remove the broken-up ore from the cavity inthe'ore deposit. V R

The invention will be described with reference to the accompanyingdrawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a composite view showing, in simplified form, an embodiment ofthe apparatus, a water chamber, which may be heated if desired, a rotarydrum for carrying a high pressure conduit for flexible connection withthe water-jet assembly of the apparatus, an earth formation being shownbroken away.

FIG. 2 is a view, partly broken away, showing the upper portion of thewell apparatus.

FIG. 2A is a like view, showing the middle portion of the wellapparatus.

FIG. 2B is a view in longitudinal section, showing the lower portion ofthe well apparatus.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged view in elevation and partial section, showing theair lift structure for the broken-up ore.

Referring to FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, it will be seen that the well apparatuscomprises a tubular casing 1, having at its top a supporting flange 2,and above the same is a pulley 3, the bottom plate of which carrieshooks 35 carrying the said supporting flange 2. As shown in FIG. 2bearings are disposed between the top flange 2 of easing 1 and a plate 3forming an element of the pulley at its under face. Projected withintubular casing 1 are three primary members which are carried by pulley3, so that rotation of the pulley may rotate said members. These threemembers consist of a high pressure inlet pipe 4 for water, an outletpipe 5 for removing the comminuted ore, and a high-pressure air pipe 6,all of which pass through apertures in suitable diaphragms in a lowertubular holder 8, telescoped within casing 1.

The members of this rotatable assembly pass through diaphragms, onebeing shown at 7, in an inner telescopic tubular holder 8, through thebottom of which projects the air lift member 9, which is a continuationof outlet pipe 5, and also the air pressure pipe 6. In addition the highpressure Water pipe 4 projects through the bottom of tubular holder 8,and may be raised or lowered relative to the casing and holder. Thediaphragm 7 in the casing 1 is secured to outlet pipe 5 of the air liftand serves as a guide for the pipe 4 which passes freely through saiddiaphragm, the latter carrying guide fingers 7*".

For raising or lowering the high pressure water pipe,

assume Patented Apr. 17, 1962 5 with nozzle 4X, and the nozzleconnection includes a pulley-disk 10, which may be operated bycontinuous cable 11 leading around a hand operated grooved driving disk12, FIG. 2. By such means the nozzle may be swung from the-vertical toangular positions relatively to pipe 4.

To permit of the rotation of the members carried by pulley 3 and thetubular holder 8, pipes 4 and 5 will have flexible or double swivelconnections at their tops, as indicated by one swivel joint 4XX for pipe4, and one at SXX for pipe 5.

Like the high pressure water pipe 4, outlet pipe 5 will carry alift-cable connection, 14, bywhich it may be raised or. lowered with theair-lift and tubular holder.

The high pressure air lift at the bottom of pipe 5 consists of anextension of that pipe formed with rows of apertures 15 surrounded bythe walls ofa chamber 16, into which high pressure air pipe 6communicates, the said rows of holes 15 being disposed upwardly ofchamber 16 and consequently well above the intake at 17. The waterinletfor pipe 4 has a swivel connection with any suitable water feedconduit. In this case it is a high pressure hose 18, the hose being ledto a drum indicated diagrammatically at 19. The hose will be woundaboutance with standard high pressure fire-engine connections with hosedrums and is well known in hydraulic feeds, requiring no detailedexplanation. The arrangement enables raising and lowering the wellapparatus relatively to casing 1 without disconnection of high pressurewater feed, and it will be understood that the arrangement in FIG. 1 ismerely schematic.

It will be understood that the air pipe 6 will lead to a source of airunder high pressure, and that a suitable high pressure pump will beinterposed in the water feed line. Also it will be understood that thehigh pressure air lift, with its air pipe will be secured to thediaphragms in the telescopic holder 8 as by frictional-press engagementtherewith, or otherwise. The high pressure water pipe with its nozzlemay pass freely through apertures in said diaphragm so as to be raisedand lowered. By raising and lowering the air lift after its claim 36 hasbeen released the telescopic holder 8 will correspondingly be raised andlowered and will constantly afford a protective shield for the threepipes.

In the operation of the method a shaft of suitable depth will be duginto the ground overlying an ore area. Thereupon the apparatus is putinto action whilst being lowered, with its casing 1, into the ground asthe high pressure water jet and withdrawal of the dislodged aggregatecontinues. When the overlying earth deposit is fairly friable, it willnot be usually necessary to rotate the apparatus, and the nozzle may bedisposed at a slight angle. When the ore deposit is reached, this isreadily determined by the character of the material withdrawn from pipe5, and that pipe may be connected by its outer section to a recoverychamber. At this point a belt leading from the pulley 3 to a power drivetherefor will effect rotation of the members within casing 1 and hencethe nozzle 4X. In its rotation the nozzle may be progressively moved toand from the horizontal, and the telescopic holder 8 may step by step belowered as the broken-up ore is removed. Before each step of saidlowering, clamps carried by pulley 3 for the outlet pipe 5 and waterpipe 4 wereleased, as hereinafter set forth. These clamps may be of anyusual form and their specific construction is not claimed herein, nordetails shown. When greater depths of ore deposits are encountered, thenthe depth for which the initially applied well apparatus isproportioned, pipes 4 and 5 may be made longer by threaded-in sections,and the tubular holder 8 likewise may be elongated by correspondingapplied sections, as well as sections added to the primary casing, ifdesired.

In FIG. 2 we have indicated at 35 the position of any desired form ofreleasable clamp between pulley member 3 and the outlet pipe 5 (the airpipe 6 being carried by said outlet pipe). In addition, we haveindicated at 36 the position of any desired form of releasable clampcarried by pulley 3 for the high pressure water pipe 4. By releasingthese clamps these pipes maybe lowered or raised, with the telescopicholder 8 when the outlet pipe 5 is lowered or raised, and may be removedfor adding sections, when required. The purpose of connecting the outletpipe 5 to one or more diaphragms of the telescopic holder'is to enableraising and lowering of that holder by applying corresponding movements,up or down, of the outlet pipe itself. However, any of the memberspassed through the telescopic holder 8 may be selected for securing tothe telescopic holder and, of course, will accomplish the same purpose.

Having described our invention, what we claim and desire to secure byLetters Patent is as follows:

An apparatus for hydraulic mining,- comprising an outermost casing andat least one tubular holder telescoped therewith, a plurality ofapertured diaphragms within and carried by said tubular holder, anoutlet pipe, a high pressure air pipe and a high pressure water pipepassed through the apertures in said diaphragms, one of said pipes beingheld by at least one of said diaphragms, whereby upon longitudinalmovement of said pipe the tubular holder may beraised and loweredrelatively to the casing, an air lift connected to a lower end of theoutlet pipe and communicating with said high pressure air pipe, a nozzlepivoted to the lower end of said high pressure water pipe, means foroperating said nozzle to move it in an arcuate path and including acable led interiorly of the tubular holder and casing, bearing meanscarried by said casing at its top, a rotatable member above and engagingsaid bearing means, clamps carried by said rotatable member for engaginga plurality of said pipes, and means for rotating said rotatable memberfor imparting rotation to said tubular holder by means of at least oneof said pipes in its engagement with at least one of said diaphragms.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS671,429 Bacon Apr. 9, 1901 2,210,582 Grosse et al. Aug. 6, 19402,518,591 Aston et al Aug. 15, 1950 2,595,434 Williams May 6, 19522,678,203 Huif May 11, 1954

